There is heightened awareness of fire prevention in homes and businesses in the United States. This awareness has led to the development of standards and legislation directed to reducing the risk of fires, particularly with respect to bedding and upholstered furniture. Conventional fire prevention techniques for bedding and upholstered furniture involve the topical application of flame retardant chemicals directly to an outer decorative layer of upholstery material.
However, recently passed legislation may render conventional fire protection techniques for bedding (particularly mattresses) inadequate. For example, the cigarette burn test for measuring flame resistance (developed by the Upholstered Furniture Action Council) has been deemed inadequate by the state of California, and by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. In addition, new regulations being promulgated in some states prohibit the sale or manufacture of mattresses that do not pass these new flammability tests.
For example, California Technical Bulletin 603 of the State of California Department of Consumer Affairs (hereinafter “TB-603”), which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, exposes the top and sides of a mattress to an open gas flame to simulate the effects of burning bedclothes. TB-603 is extremely aggressive relative to conventional cigarette burn test and many industry analysts are skeptical that conventional upholstered furniture and bedding products (e.g., mattresses, etc.) will be able to pass TB-603.
In addition, material that can prevent the propagation of flame into the core cushioning material of furniture, and institutional bedding is desired. California Technical Bulletin 117 of the State of California Department of Consumer Affairs (hereinafter “TB-117”), which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, provides testing for upholstered furniture, and California Technical Bulletin 129 of the State of California Department of Consumer Affairs (hereinafter “TB-129”), which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, provides testing for institutional bedding.
In some cases, even though an upholstery fabric or ticking is constructed of inherently flame resistant material, it may be permeable such that heat and hot gases may be transmitted through the fabric causing internal materials to ignite. Furthermore, conventional methods of assembling mattresses and upholstered furniture may produce seams and joints that cannot withstand the new flammability test without splitting open and subjecting flammable interior materials to the flame. Also, pores formed in bedding fabrics as a result of sewing, seaming, quilting, or the attachment of labels, handles, decorations, vents, etc., may be penetrated by flames and hot gases which may result in the combustion of interior materials.
It is desirable to provide a thin and workable flame barrier to the upholsterer or mattress builder, to enable the incorporation of the material into thin or tightly fitting structures. Unfortunately, conventional flame resistant materials used in the mattress construction industry are very thick and heavy battings or high loft nonwoven structures, in excess of 10 ounces per square yard. These materials are difficult to use, add unacceptable bulk to the article, and are not as soft, resilient, or durable as conventional non-flame resistant cushions foams or battings.